Anticreeping device for rails



Jan. 1, 1929.

C. D. YOUNG ANTIGREEPING DEVICE FOR RAILS l d D 12 1927 INVENTOR: C/mrlesj Yozzzzg,

KTTORNEY.

Patented den, i, 1929.

an STATES CHARLES D. YOUNG, 0F WAYNE, PENNSYLVANIA.

ANTICREEPING DEVICE FOR RAILS.

Application filed December 12, 1927. Serial No. 239,348.

The present invention relates to anchoring devices for track rails and more particularly to a device for preventing creeping of railroad rails.

Some of the objects of the present invention are to provide an anchor for track rails which can be manufactured cheaply and which is effective and positive in operation; to provide a complete unitary anchoring device which is self-retaining on a rail irrespective of track vibrations and frozen conditions of the road bed; to provide a rail anchor for frictionally grasping a rail and wherein the gripping pressure is automatically increased by the pressure transmitted under the ap plied force tendingto produce creeping of the rails; to provide a one-piece anchor arranged to be sprung into gripping relation with a rail by a rotative movement of its ends about a fixed fulcrum; to provide a one-piece anti-creeping anchor for rails having inwardly extending jaws at its ends and arranged to be brought to clamping position by wedge action; to provide a one-piece anticreeping anchor for rails having gripping jaws at the ends thereof and one of the jaws being laterally offset with respect to a transverse plane passing through the rail and through the other jaw; to. provide a rail anchor having at one end a flange contacting face and a gripping jaw and at the other end an oflset arm looped away from the bottom of the rail flange and an oflset gripping jaw engaging the top of said flange; to provide an anti-creeping anchor for track rails having gripping jaws for engaging opposite sides of the flange of a rail and an intermediate body portion arranged to contact with the face or a tie at a point to produce a maximum clamping action of the jaws under gripping pressure; and to provide other improvements as will hereinafter appear.

. In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 represents a plan oi a rail .anchor embodying one form of the invention arranged in anchoring position upon a rail in juxtaposed relation to a. tie and also showing in dotted lines its initial or applying position; Fig. 2 represents a side elevation of a rail showing an end of the device in anchoring position and a conventional section being indicated by a shaded circle; Fig. 3 represents a section on line 33 of Fig. 1; Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1 but showing another form of the invention; and Fig. 5 is a side elevation of the device of Fig. 4 in anchoring position upon a rail.

Referring to the drawings, one form of the present invention consists of a body 10 of steel or other suitable material having suiiicient inherent elasticity to resist deformation from its original shape, and of the necessary toughness and strength to withstand the applied force due to the tractive eiiortto which the rail 11 is subjected. In section, the body 10 may be of any suitable shape but as here shown in the preferred form is made from round bar stock.

In the present instance, one portion 12 of the body 10 is slightly curved relative to a vertical plane but substantially straight relative to a horizontally plane, so that in operative or anchoring position of the body 10 this portion will have one side face 13 inclined away from the opposed face 14 of a tie 15, While its top 16 abuts a substantial part of the bottom of the base flange 17 of the rail 11. This body portion 12 has an upturned end 18 terminating in a gripping jaw 20 which forms a recess or seat 21 to fit about and receive the side edge of the rail base flange 17. This seat 21 has a depth sufficicnt to provide an effective overlapping of the jaw 20, while its height is less than the thiclr ness oi the flange 17 which it engages, so that the jaw 20 is sprung open when the device is driven into anchoring position upon the rail 11. Preferably, the gripping face of the jaw 20 is formed with a bevel 22 having an angle conforming with the bevelled face of the top of the rail flange 17 in order that a maximum friction and clamping area is presented to the top of the flange 17. In connection with this seat 21, it should be noted that its bottom, namely the vertical inner 9 wall of the end 18, contacts with the side of the flange 17 to prevent movement of the body 10 transversely of the raillland also to provide a rigid lateral clamping against the rail flange.

The other portion 23 of the body 10 has a loop configuration and is oifset with respect to the horizontal plane of the body and in addition is laterally bent out oi". the vertical plane of the portion 12 and away from the side of the tie with which the body 10 is to contact. This laterally bent end 24 is so shaped and arranged, in the preferred form, as to seat against the opposite side of the rail flange 17 from the end 18, and

terminates in an inturned aw 25 arranged to engage the bevelled top of the flange 17. The dimensions of the end 24 are such that the jaw 25 must be sprung to its flange engaging position, and to assist in bringing about the necessary clamping action the grip-- ping face 26 of the aw 25 is bevelled to conform to the bevelled top of the flange 17. Hence, when the jaw 25 is forced into place, the wedge action of the meeting bevelled surfaces ensures an efl'ective grip being maintained by the anchor.

In order to attach the anchor of the present invention in operative position upon a rail, the end 18 is passed under the rail flange 17 so that the body 10 assumes a position at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the rail (as indicated in dotted lines Fig. 1) and with the side of the loop 23 resting against the side of a tie. The jaw 20 is new raised until the top portion 16 of the anchor body contacts with the bottom of the rail at which time the jaw 20 is just above the plane of the top of the adjacent rail flange and hence the anchor can then be moved lat erally toward the longitudinal center line of the rail so that the aw 20 becomes hooked over the edge of the flange 17, as shown in dotted lines-on Fig. 1. The end 18 is now struck at point 19 with a sledge and the jaw 20 driven along the flange 17 toward the tie to assume the position shown in full lines on Fig. 1. This hammering force acting about the point of contact 27 of the body 10 with the tie 15 as a fulcrum drives the end 24: out-- wardly and upwardly so that the jaw 25 is sprung over the top of the rail base flange 17 The anchor is now in the full line position of Fig. 1, which is its operative position clamped to the flange 17 and abutting at one point the side face of the tie.

The foregoing description relates to the preferred form of the invention wherein the anchor is applied to a standard weight rail with maximum rail base and while the anchor is shown as having gripping engagement with the sides of the rail flange the invention is not to be construed as limited in this respect.

In the form of the invention shown in Figs. 4 and 5, a rail anchor is illustrated having the new and advantageous characteristics of the form heretofore described but differing therefrom in that provision is made forvariation in the width of the base of the rail. Since this form is primarily similar to that of Fig. 1, the same reference numbers are used on like parts and diflerent reference numbers applied only to the modified construction.

In order that a standard size anchor can be provided which is capable of fitting about the base of a rail with full allowance for all ordinary variations due to rolling, the end 18 is formed with a relatively deep recess or seat 30, so that when its gripping jaw 20 is clamped to a rail base of average width there will be a clearance 31 between the part 18 and the side of the base. This clearance 31 is suflicient to allow for all ordinary variations in rolling of the base and allows the end 18 and hook jaw 20 to be driven to flexed clamping position regardless of differing rail base widths. In connection with the jaw 20, it should be noted that, in this instance, it terminates in a bevel face 32, the angle of which is such as to cause the face 32 to parallel the side of therail base in the initial position of the anchor whereby it can be more readily turned and hooked over this base edge.

For a similar purpose, the opposite end of the anchor is provided with a clearance 33 formed by elongating the end portion 24 while still preserving a loop 35 but in flattened form which clears the bottom of the rail base at one side. Thus, when the end hook 25 is in clamping posit-ion, as seen in 5, the horizontal space formed by the clearance 33 beyond the side of the base is sufficient to allow for practically all differences in rail base widths. Preferably in this form, the end hook 25 has a bevel face 36, the angle of which is such as to cause the face 36 to parallel the side of the rail base in the initial position of the anchor whereby it can more readily ride up and over the base edge under the end driving force applied to the opposite end.

It will now be apparent that a complete unitary one-piece anchor has been devised to prevent rails from creeping, wherein gripping jaws are provided out of transverse alignment to engage the top of a rail base at opposite sides respectively and to exert such a clamping action as will, in conjunction with a tie abutting part, hold a rail against creeping. Furthermore, by providing an anchor which is brought to operative position by a rotative movement about a fulcrum upon a tie, there is a substantially equalized flexing of the anchor ends, as a result of which the two sides of the rail base flange are rigidly held'resisting movement of the rail relative to the tie. Another feature contributing to the success of the present invention is the face contact of the portion 12 with the bottom of the rail base while the offset looped portion 23 is spaced from the bottom of the base. In the case of the portion 12, the contact relation distributes the pressure of the hook jaw 20 along the rail base to prevent pivotal or improper turning of the anchor body, while in the case of the portion 23 allowance is made for the desired full flexing of the offset hook end 25 to maintain a maximum leverage. Also the provision of a fulcrum against the tie at a point between the offset end and the longitudinal axis of the rail brings the coun- 'teracting force where it should be to efficiently hold the overlapping jaws 20 and 25 in gripping engagement with the top of the rail base, and consequently the greater the force tending to produce creeping the greater will be the transmitted proportioned resisting pressure.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. An anti-creeper for rails comprising a body having its ends terminating respectively in inwardly turned gripped jaws so spaced and arranged in initial position of the body upon a rail base that one aw grips over the side of the rail base and the second jaw is free under pressure to clear the opposite side of said rail base, and a portion of said body being arranged to abut a tie in said initial position whereby a rotative movement of said body causes the second jaw to be flexed and forced into gripping relation with the opposite side of said rail base while the gripping action of the first jaw is increased.

2. An anti-creeper for rails comprising a body arranged to pass transversely beneath a rail base with one portion in contact with the bottom of said rail base and a second portion looped out of engagement with the bottom of said base and offset laterally away from a tie, said looped portion being arranged to abut said tie, and inturned jaws on the respective ends of said body arranged to be flexed into gripping relation respectively with the side edges of said base, said flexing being caused by a turning movement of said body about the tie abutting point as a fulcrum.

An anti-creeper for rails comprising a body arranged to pass transversely beneath a rail base, with an intermediate part thereof in contact with a tie, an upwardly and inwardly formed gripping jaw on one end of said body providing a recess to receive the side of said rail base, and a lateral offset in said body extending away from said tie and terminating in an upwardly and inwardly formed grip-ping aw forn'iing a recess to receive the other side of said rail base, said jaws being spaced apart a distance less than the width of said rail base and arranged to be brought to flexed gripping position by rotative movement of said body about said tie engagin part as a fulcrum.

at. in anti-creeper for rails comprising a body arranged to pass transversely beneath a rail base, with an intermediate part thereof in contact with a tie, an upwardly and inwardly formed gripping jaw on one end of said body providing a recess to receive the side of said rail base, a lateral offset in said body extending away from said tie and ter minating 1n an upwardly and inwardlyformed gripping jaw forming a recess to re ceive the other side of said gripping jaw, said jaws being spaced apart a distance less than the width of said rail base and arranged to be brought to flexed gripping position by rotative movement of said body about said tie engaging part as a fulcrum, and said jaws respectively provided with wedge faces bevelled to conform to the bevel of the top of said rail base.

5. An anti-creeper for rails comprising a body arranged to pass transversely beneath a rail base, having one end laterally ofiset with respect to the other end, said ofi'set end being joined to said body by a looped part out of contact with the bottom of the rail base, the respective ends being formed with inwardly turned jaws arranged to overlap the top of said base at opposite sides thereof, and the side of said looped part opposite to the offset end engaging a tie to provide a fulcrum for swinging said body and flexing said jaws to gripping position.

6. An anti-creeper for rails comprising a body having its ends formed respectively with inturned jaws to grip the opposite sides of the base of a rail, said body having a portion bearing against a substantial part of the bottom of said base, and another portion bent downward and offset laterally, said bent portion being arranged to abut a tie on the opposite side of said body from said olfset, whereby the force opposed to the creeping force causes a maximum gripping of said jaws.

'7. An anti-creeper for rails comp-rising a body having its ends formed respectively with inturned jaws for gripping the base of a rail at opposite sides when flexed and forced into place, one of said jaws being located in a plane parallel to and spaced from the plane passing through said body and the other jaw, and one part of said body abutting a tie between the sides of the rail base whereby a maximum flexing grip is maintained by said jaws.

Signedat Philadelphia, county of Phila delphia, State of Pennsylvania, this 28th day of November, 1927.

CHARLES D. YOUNG. 

